


I Don't Know How To Love

by TheRedPaladin101



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: And Lance, Keith is a shy piece of shit and i love him, Lance is my boi, M/M, a dash of angst, lots of fluff, sick!keith
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-19
Updated: 2017-05-19
Packaged: 2018-11-01 22:49:09
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,636
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10931640
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheRedPaladin101/pseuds/TheRedPaladin101
Summary: Keith never knew how to love. Was there a proper way to do so? Was there a book he could read? He didn't know. Lance, on the other hand, has it all down. So Keith tries to copy him.. in his own way."Oh," Lance said at some point, setting down the battle plans. Keith's cheeks turned from pink to red, closing his eyes in embarrassment. Lance chuckled, wrapping his arms around him. "Cuddles?"





	I Don't Know How To Love

"An infection?!" Lance whirled around to face Shiro and Coran, eyes wide. "He had an infection?!" 

"Lance, calm down," Shiro waved his hands. "Keith is fine. We found a wound on his shoulder this morning and it was infected." Lance grew even redder. Shiro smiled reassuringly. "Keith claims he didn't know it was there, but we all know how he is with injuries." 

"I swear I'm gonna kick his ass when he's better," Lance huffed, crossing his arms angrily. 

"You're making a big deal out of this," Pidge said from the couch, not looking up from her laptop. "Keith is fine. An infection is not the worse thing that could happen to him." She pointed at Lance when he opened his mouth. "And it's not going to kill him." 

Lance looked at Coran. "Can't we just throw him in the crypods or something?" 

Coran shook his head. "Since the battle last week, the crypods have been going crazy. Me and Shiro are repairing them as much as we can." 

Lance sighed, picking up his bayard from beside Pidge. "I'm gonna go see him." 

"Don't lecture him," Shiro warned. "I already did." 

Lance waved his hand. "Whatever." 

 

Lance typed in the code for Keith's room swiftly, the door zipping open immediately. He sighed when he spotted Keith on his bed, looking almost half asleep on his stomach. His hair was a mess and his eyes still had dark shadows under them - which makes sense to Lance now that they know why. His shirt was abandoned on the floor and his right shoulder was wrapped up in clean white bandages. Lance ran a hand through his hair, calming down a bit as he walked towards Keith. 

"I know..." Keith mumbled before Lance could speak. "I'm an idiot..." Lance frowned, sitting down on the edge of the bed near his head. Keith didn't turn to look at him. Lance sighed, setting a hand on his back away from the bandages. 

"You're not an idiot," he said gently, thumb massaging his shoulder blade. Keith turned his head, looking up at him from behind his bangs. Lance leaned down, voice just above a whisper. "You're a dumbass." 

Keith's lips twitched upward. "Jerk." 

"So what did you do?" Lance asked, running his fingers through Keith's hair. Keith hummed, closing his eyes. 

"The battle last week.. I got hit in the shoulder and I thought it'd just fade away like other scratches," he shifted, hissing a bit when his shoulder moved. Lance set his hand back on his back, keeping him in place on the bed. "Well, when it started to look bad, I just covered it up." 

"Then you passed out while sparring with me," Lance added.

"And then Coran found a bit of poison in the wound-" 

"Wait what?" 

"-so he cleaned it out and now I'm fine." 

"Poison?" Lance tried so hard to keep his voice from rising, causing it to crack at the end. He cleared his throat when Keith snickered, narrowing his eyes. "They said it was an infection." 

Keith smiled sheepishly. "Oops... Was I not supposed to say?" 

Lance rubbed his face, counting to ten in his head. Keith could drive him crazy sometimes. He let out a heavy breath and slid off his jacket. "Moving pass this topic before I explode, I'm going to tell you about the training today." 

Keith hummed lazily, watching Lance lay down next to him after draping his jacket over Keith. Lance opened his arms up, smiling at him. Keith shifted and flinched at the sharp pain in his shoulder, climbing on top of Lance to cuddle. Lance smiled wider and helped him, watching for any signs of distress, which he stressed over when he spotted them. Keith relaxed when he settled on top of him, legs tangled with Lance's and head resting under his collar bones with his hands by his head. Lance smiled, combing his fingers through his hair. "So let me begin with Shiro..." 

"Kick your ass?" 

"Felt like he did more than kicking.." 

"Did you win in any fights today?" 

"One," Lance draped his other arm over his waist, fixing the edge of the jacket to cover Keith's lower back. "It was with Hunk. He slipped on some water that may or may not have been my tears from Pidge's fight, and I was able to beat him.." 

Lance continued to ramble on about what he did today after Keith passed out during their fight. It was when he was explaining what Shiro did to him did he realize Keith fell asleep. Smiling softly, he kissed his temple and let his head fall back, closing his own eyes. 

"Love you, amor.." 

 

It took a week for Keith's shoulder to heal, but it just got worse for Keith. Coran was doing a checkup on him when he found Keith lacking in sleep and food. He even had a fever. A fucking _fever._ Lance had to convince Keith to lay low for a bit till he's better since they needed him to be healthy. 

Keith was currently laying on the couch with Lance at his feet, trying to fall asleep since Coran told him "You must get more sleep or you'll just drop dead at any second!" Keith preferred to stay alive so now he's trying. 

Looking over his shoulder, he spotted Lance reading through battle plans Shiro gave him a few days ago. Keith watched him, debating whether or not to ask him for cuddles. 

Sitting up on his knees, Keith crawled over to Lance and onto his lap without a word. Lance looked up, raising an eyebrow at his boyfriend. Keith blushed a bit and looked away for a moment, grabbing Lance's wrists and pulling them away from one another, the plans now only in one hand. Lance watched him in confusion while Keith leaned forward and tucked his head under his jaw, his mouth still shut tight. 

"Oh," Lance said at some point, setting down the battle plans. Keith's cheeks turned from pink to red, closing his eyes in embarrassment. Lance chuckled, wrapping his arms around him. "Cuddles?" 

"Yeah..." Keith mumbled, relaxing when he feels Lance's hand run over his back and shoulders soothingly. Lance turned his head, burying his nose into his hair. "You're such a dork, Keith." 

Keith didn't respond, shifting his legs to rest on one side of Lance's legs while he turned his body. Lance kissed his head, cradling him to his chest. "You could've just asked, amor." 

"I know..." Keith nuzzles into his neck more, feeling Lance's pulse against his nose. Lance chuckled again, fingers grazing the back of Keith's neck. He glanced at the battle plans before scooting then away with his hand, closing his eyes and beginning to take in Keith's warm body.

 

A few weeks have passed and Keith has gotten much better. Dark shadows gone, hunger gone, and fever gone. However, Shiro banned him from training pass level four for the next month as to not overwork himself. When Keith tried to go to level five, the system repeated the warning Shiro gave Keith before, which scared the hell out of Keith. 

Since the war was still going on, Keith was able to join the mission to another planet who's name was way to hard for Keith to pronounce correctly. He stood guard with Lance while Allura and Shiro discussed a peace treaty with the aliens. 

These aliens gave Keith nightmares. They were taller than Shiro was and as thin as a twig. Four sets of arms on their upper bodies along with fiver sets of legs growing smaller as they go up the waist. Large black eyes sat on their heads with antennas above them and no mouths or noses. To top it off, they were all green and had large ass wings. 

It took everything in Keith not to shoot the one staring at him and Lance. 

Even though these aliens were creepy, they were very kind and gentle and knew how to throw a party. Lance was all for that. Their music was very similar to Earth's music - just no words. It was thrown in the main castle on the planet where the king lived with his daughter and son. All were invited. 

Keith looked around nervously at the dancing aliens crowded in the main hall, music blaring and lights flashing. Allura wasn't kidding when she said they loved to party. Lance ran off earlier to change into better clothes since he had his armor on. Keith did the same, but couldn't find Lance. He was starting to panic a little. 

"Keith!" Lance pushed through the crowd, grinning and sweating a bit. Looks like he's been dancing. Keith looked up curiously, his heart calming. Lance grabbed his hand and started dragging him into the crowd. "Come dance with us!" 

When Keith heard that, he paled and began tugging at his hand. "Wait, Lance- Hey! I can't dance!" 

Lance snorted. "It's a party, babe! You don't need to know how to dance!" Keith didn't stop tugging. Lance didn't stop pulling. This kept going till Lance reached the middle of the dance floor where Pidge was partying the life out of her. Lance spun around and grabbed Keith's hands, grinning and spinning both of them around. Keith yelped, copying what Lance was doing before he'd trip. 

"There you go!" Lance laughed, pulling Keith chest to chest with him. Holding Keith's right hand in his left, he held onto the shorter boy's waist and began dancing around in an over excited way. Keith kept looking around to make sure they didn't run into anyone - since Lance was taking up almost the whole middle of the dance floor - and tried to keep pace with Lance. He grinned a bit when he started to get the hang of it, feeling his heart pounding and the heat from Lance's body. 

"Lance!" Keith squeezed his hand. "What're we doing?" 

"Dancing!" he squeezed his waist, lifting Keith off the ground and spinning in a circle. Keith gripped his shoulder tightly, feeling his cheeks heat up when he noticed Pidge taking pictures. 

The party lasted all night. Lucky for Keith, Shiro believed in a good night sleep. They all left after hours of staying there. The paladins flew their lions back to their hangars while Allura and Coran took a pod back. Keith still felt Lance's hands holding him as they danced when he left Red in her hangar. He smiled a bit, turning and rushing for Blue's hangar. It was when he got to the door did he realize what he was about to ask. 

Lance was putting away his armor and bayard when he noticed Keith standing there. He raised an eyebrow at the embarrassed look on Keith's face, turning to face the door. "What's wrong, Keith?"

Keith took in a deep breath and walked forward, stopping in front of Lance. His throat went dry. Lance tilted his head, furrowing his eyebrows in confusion. Keith stared at him with pleading eyes, but didn't say a thing. 

"Hey," Lance tucked a strand of hair behind his ear, "what's wrong?" 

Keith averted his eyes and stepped forward, his forehead pressing against Lance's chest. Lance watched him and smiled, wrapping his arms around him. "You could've asked.." 

"I know..."

 

"It's so cute, really," Lance grinned, watching Hunk try to make cookies again. "I always knew Keith wouldn't be able to show he loves me that easily, but this is just cute." 

Hunk looked up, setting a pan down. "What did he do, again?" 

"First, he crawled onto my lap and just sat there before I got the idea he wanted to cuddle, but then he came to Blue's hangar a few nights ago and just stood there with pleading eyes to get me to hug him," Lance smiled. "I honestly can't judge him about it. It's just who he is; he can't ask directly." 

Hunk hummed, lips twitching. "It seems to me he's trying to do what you do." 

"Really?" 

"Well, when you started dating, you weren't hesitant to show your affection," Hunk pointed out. "Keith was. He was shy, embarrassed, and just inexperienced. So he might've been watching what you've been doing and is trying to copy you. But, since he's shy and embarrassed about it, he won't speak." 

Lance ran a hand through his hair. "Man, aren't you a genius." 

"I try," he shrugged, trying to break the cookie. "You should just play along. Let him get used to it, you know? You're the only person he's ever tried to show affection to." Lance hummed, leaning against the counter. Hunk sighed when he couldn't break the cookie. "Keith really does love you. We all can see how he's trying to show it." 

"I noticed.." Lance looked down at his hands. "I love him - I really do. It makes me feel all fluttery when he tries to be loving towards me. I can't blame him at all. Knowing what he went through, it's normal for him not to show his love towards anybody. You know?" 

"Of course I know," he looked up. "We all do." His eyes flicked behind Lance and he froze a bit. Lance frowned and looked over his shoulder. Keith stood at the doorway, his eyes averting when Lance looked at him. Lance turned to face him. "Hey, Keith." 

Keith turned and walked off. Lance glanced back at Hunk before following him, catching Keith around the corner. "Keith, what's wrong?" 

"I heard you guys.." Keith said, stopping in his tracks when Lance grabbed his shoulder. "I'm shy. Embarrassed. Inexperienced. The complete opposite of you.." he looked back at Lance. "Why do you even love me if I don't show it?" 

Lance sighed, cupping his cheek gently. "Keith, you don't have to show me to tell me that you love me. I know. Just like you know I love you." He smiled, kissing his forehead. "Everybody's different. You don't like showing off your affectionate side. It's okay. I still love you for who you are." 

"Lance.." Keith's face scrunched up a bit - like he was holding back on something. Lance brushed his thumb across his cheek. Keith exhaled heavily through his nose and jumped forward, arms locking around Lance's torso. Lance blinked in surprise, looking down at Keith. Keith had his face buried in his shoulder, ear tips red. Lance smiled and hugged him back, nuzzling his hair. "I love you too.." 

 

Lance was woken up later that night by Keith. He rolled over onto his back, rubbing his eyes so he could see Keith more clearly. He looked as if he saw a ghost. "Keith? Hey, what's wrong?" 

He sat up and pulled Keith down onto the bed. Keith stared at him, tears pricking the corners of his eyes. He cupped Lance's face and choked out "You're alive..." 

Lance frowned softly. "Of course I am.. Keith, what happened? Did you have a nightmare?" He nodded shakily. Lance sighed softly, brushing his bangs back and planting a lingering kiss on his forehead. "Come here.. lay down with me.." 

Keith nodded, letting Lance pull him down onto the bed with him. Lance pulled the blanket up and around them, rubbing his back. Keith lifted his head from Lance's shoulder and onto his chest. He kept shifting till his ear was right over Lance's heart, his body completely relaxing at the full proof of life in Lance. 

"It's okay," Lance whispered, arms holding Keith protectively. "It's okay..." 

Keith tilted his head up, eyes shining and mouth shut tight. Lance scanned his eyes before smiling, leaning down and kissing him softly. Keith hummed quietly, eyes slipping shut and lips kissing his back. 

"You know," Lance spoke once he pulled away, thumb brushing over Keith's cheek bone, "you could've just asked." 

Keith smiled. "I know."


End file.
